I get a version of this question all the time. I think we are all conditioned to shop for the best price. For some things, it makes sense to go ahead and buy the cheap version—like a hammer—although you still get what you pay for. Most of us are not professional contractors and using a hammer to hang pictures does not require the most expensive hammer on the shelf. In this case, It makes sense to buy a cheaper version for what you need.

I think the first thing we need to understand is that the supplement industry is not regulated like the drug industry. If you see an over-the-counter drug on the shelf—like ibuprofen for example—the name brand and the generic are going to be identical (except for perhaps the delivery system). Medicines are also regulated, for good reason, to be the exact dosage indicated on the label.

Remember, the FDA does not regulate what goes into your supplement bottle. Labeling laws only require that the supplement companies not make medical claims, but outside of that it is buyer beware.

Statistically, 80% of all Americans use nutritional supplements. The expectation is that the nutrients you purchased are going to provide your body with all the expected health benefits. These benefits only happen when the nutrients actually reach the target cells. After you ingest a supplement, your body will begin to breakdown the pill or capsule. The rate at which this occurs is called the absorption rate. Most supplements have low absorption rates as evidenced by Consumerlabs.com. The most advertised supplements, like Centrum and GNC, tend to have the lowest absorption rates. Simply, if the capsule does not get broken down in the system, no nutrients are available to get into your body.

Once the capsule gets broken down and gets into the blood stream, the next step is to make sure the nutrient gets into the cells of your body. The term for this is bioavailability. Only about 20% of the supplement companies will produce products with high bioavailability rates. As an example, minerals are better absorbed when they are chelated, which means they have 2 amino acids attached to each mineral molecule so that they get transported easily into the cell. Most nutrients also require other nutrients to synergistically help with absorption and bio-availability.

About 20% of the supplement market would be considered medicinal grade products with a high absorption and a high bio-availability rate. These are typically recommended or sold by health care practitioners for two good reasons.. liability and effectiveness. If you know exactly what is in it, you can effectively prescribe it.

So the next time you go bargain shopping for supplements you may very well be throwing your money into the wind. In this case, you do get what you pay for and when it comes to your health, get the best supplements you can buy.

Vitamin D may be the most talked about nutrient on the planet
right now.Scientists have published 1,582 new papers on vitamin D
in the first six months of 2010!

The interesting part of all this research is that very few are
about toxicity.. instead they cover a breathtaking variety of
diseases.

These papers raise the possibility that many of the diseases
that we take as being part of the human condition are really not
part of the human condition at all, instead they are a direct result of
Vitamin D deficiency.

As an example,some smokers get emphysema, some lung cancer, some
heart disease,some bladder cancer, some pancreatic cancer, and
some live to be 100.

Increasingly, vitamin D deficiency looks as if it may do the
same thing. Some vitamin D deficient people will get asthma, others
cancer, others heart disease, others autoimmune illness, and some
will live to be 100.

There also seems to be diseases debilitating our children, the most
notable being epidemics of autoimmune disorders, asthma, and autism.
All are truly epidemic, all are debilitating or worse, and vitamin
D is involved in all three. We have failed to make sure our
children had enough vitamin D throughout their growth and development
and now our children suffer, in large part because of the hysteria over
vitamin D toxicity.

What dose is toxic? Know one seems to have a definitive answer,
but for some adults it is around 50,000 IU/day. Interesting to note
is that the FDA sets our recommended dose at a measly 400 IU/day.

The new research is confirming the new optimal blood tested
ranges for vitamin D to be between 80 and 100, instead of the
current range of 20 to 100.

Be sure to check your D3 levels to see where your current levels
are. If you are below 80, you need to supplement your diet
for a period of time until you can be in the range of 80 to 100.

Most of us are Vitamin D deficient. The recommended dose to restore
vitamin D levels is typically around 10,000 IU per day. Once
you reach the recommended healthy range, the maintenance dosage
is 5,000 IU per day.

The good news is that Vitamin D3 is a relatively inexpensive supplement
… but you absolutely need to use a Professional grade supplement
like Designs for Health to get your levels back to normal quickly.

I recommend the liquid D3, called Emulsi D3 by Designs. Each drop is
equal to 2000 IU’s.. so you would need 5 drops per day to restore
vitamin D levels.

Feel free to compare prices on Designs for Health products at my new
website:

www.mickshop.com

You will basically save 20% off the retail price.

Have a great weekend and God Bless!!

Mick

Just read an interesting study regarding muscle cramps. So lets start with something most of us know..In order to prevent cramps we need to drink lots of liquids.. especially filtered water.. and we need to keep our body supplied with adequate electrolytes like potassium, magnesium and calcium.

Most active people are magnesium deficient. This seems to be a very common reason why people cramp.

Ok.. now what do you do when you start to cramp? You may be like most Americans and say “Lets grab a Gatorade” .. according to this research, not only is that a poor choice, it can actually be detrimental. Sports performance drinks are loaded with high fructose corn syrup and this is been shown in numerous studies to cause a host of problems.

Now for the interesting news.. the quickest way to stop cramping once it starts is to take vinegar. The study actually used either dill pickle juice or straight vinegar. For some reason unknown to the researchers, vinegar seems to activate a receptor in the nervous system that corrects the muscle cramp within 60 to 90 seconds after ingestion.

So what can we conclude from this research? My conclusions are this.. daily intake of vinegar may prevent cramping and we do have evidence that taking vinegar during episodes of muscle cramping can alleviate the cramps within 90 seconds. I can’t speak for you, but the next time I get a cramp I am reaching for the organic apple cider vinegar.

Moving from fat to lean is not a matter of depriving your body of food, in fact in regards to fat burning, the opposite is true. To get lean, the body needs more food not less. A healthy metabolism requires a lot of nutrients on a daily basis in order to burn fat.

Our bodies are designed to eat or graze through out the day, foods like lean proteins, healthy fats, high fiber vegetables and high antioxidant fruits. When you follow the crowd you will be inclined to use the predominant philosophy that eating less calories will help you lose weight. The old adage of calories in, calories out. If you look closely at the literature you will find conclusive evidence that eating less leads to a depressed metabolism, nutrient deficiencies and lots of muscle loss, not fat loss.

Yes.. you will lose weight by restricting calories, but look out, the body will put the weight back on and the bad part is it will be all fat. By eating less, you will lose muscle and gain fat. The secret to fat loss lies in the proper selection of foods, as an example.. I have never seen anyone eat to many fibrous vegetables!

This is a common question from clients. The answer is really simple and most functional physicians will advise us to drink half your bodyweight in ounces per day. Now, does this include all liquids or should it be all water. Any caffeinated beverage will actually dehydrate you, so this is counterproductive. Adding lime or lemon will help make the water more alkaline.

Here is how much you should drink:
0.6-0.7 ounces per pound of bodyweight

Therefore, 120 to 140 ounces for a 200 lbs man.

A recent study showed that men drinking 5 glasses of water a day vs 2 glasses a day, had a 54% lower risk of dying of a heart attack.

One of my favorite healthy oils is coconut oil. Yes, coconut oil is a saturated fat, but we need to know that not all saturated fats are the same. This particular oil is considered a medium chain triglyceride or MCT for short. MCT’s have been shown to be very healthy for the immune system and for intestinal health.

One of the great things about coconut oil is its ability to remain stable in high temperatures during cooking. This should be your cooking oil of choice. Many people make the mistake of using olive oil for cooking. Olive oil, although it is a very healthy oil, is not very stable during cooking and should be used for salads and marinates.

Research over several decades that when you add coconut to the “average American diet”, it created better serum lipid profiles than the American Heart Association’s recommended diet. Coconut oil helps improve insulin resistance, lower cholesterol levels, increase metabolism and helps the body burn fat.

I encourage all of my clients to use coconut oil abundantly. I personally use it in soups, baking and stir frying. In addition, topical use of coconut oil is a perfect moisturizer for the skin.